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Frankville
Located near the ruins of now-destroyed Fort Eugene, Frankville was originally created to help feed Fort Eugene and provide a livelihood for NCR sharecroppers. Now, the town serves as the NCR's northernmost settlement and is under constant protection by the FNA to ward off those hostile to the NCR. History Frankville's origins lie with the founding of Fort Eugene in 2248 by NCR settlers and caravaners. Back then, New California was still rather volatile and the New California Republic was only just coming into its own. However, the NCR's influence proceeded itself, with NCR caravans going far north into Cascadia, exchanging resources like lumber and water for technology. Fort Eugene was founded by an alliance of NCR settlers and Cascadian caravaners, clearing out the hostile tribals called Snow Runners. The tribals retreated north, away from the town. The town was established as a trading post between Cascadia and New California. In tandem with the founding of Fort Eugene, a nearby plot of land was set aside for sharecroppers to feed the residents of Fort Eugene in the fertile Willamette Valley. The sharecroppers arrived three years later, attracted by promises of large swathes of land and free water. When they arrived, however, the sharecroppers were greeted by NCR settlers still clashing with the vengeful Snow Runners tribe. The sharecroppers, led by a former mechanic named Frank Noah, helped the NCR settlers in Fort Eugene against the tribals. After a couple of months of hardship, they achieved victory over the Snow Runners and sent the tribals running back north into the Cascadia wilderness. After fighting off the tribals, the NCR sharecroppers settled down and established their own community outside of Fort Eugene. Frank Noah was elected mayor of the new sharecropper community and his friends decided that due to his contributions to the community, they would name it after him, Frankville. For the next decade, Frankville remained safe and peaceful, under the protection of Fort Eugene and the NCR. Tribals, raiders, and other enemies knew to avoid Frankville, not wanting draw the ire of the NCR garrison. The sharecroppers prospered with their protection and free water, feeding Fort Eugene for the large part. Some sharecroppers even managed to become prosperous themselves and return to the NCR or even create their own independent homesteads in other parts of Cascadia. Frankville's prosperity ended as the Oregon Brushfire Wars escalated. The formation of the Oregon Confederacy and the NCR's failure in the Brushfire War saw tribal attacks on Fort Eugene and Frankville increase after 2263. Luckily for Frankville, the NCR garrison was always able to repulse the Oregon tribals" attacks, as they were ill-equipped and primitive. The sharecroppers of Frankville grew arrogant with the knowledge that they were "completely safe" from attack. Word of Stern's Raiders from the north did not bother Frankville as they were confident the NCR would hunt down the Ranger "deserters". The tribals attacks of Frankville continued and culminated in a very large attack on both Frankville and Fort Eugene led by Chief Kill-a-Ton in 2266. The NCR garrison and the Fort Eugene town militia managed to repel the attack at a cost. The sharecroppers, assisting in the town's defense, celebrated their victory soon afterwards and were very hopeful for their future. That was until a couple months later when a single tribal began a one-man war against NCR forces in northern Oregon at NCR homesteads, Frankville, and Fort Eugene. That tribal, named Three Leaf, attacked the NCR for different reasons than Chief Kill-a-Ton, more personal ones. His whole tribe was slaughtered during Operation: RED TRAIL by Badlander mercenaries, and Three Leaf wanted vengeance on their mercs and their employers. So armed only with his hunting spear and his hatred, Three Leaf hunted down and killed every mercenary responsible for the death of his tribe. After that, Three Leaf continued on to fight the NCR in the region. First, Three Leaf attacked homesteads flying the NCR flag. Then he moved on to attacking Frankville and Fort Eugene, ambushing sharecroppers and NCR patrols. The attacks went on for about a month until Three Leaf was caught by the sheriff of Frankville and a lynch mob. Three Leaf, the Bloody Blade of Oregon, was almost hanged on the spot but was instead taken back to Frankville to hang before a crowd in need of justice. In September 2266, Three Leaf was taken back to Frankville to hang. He looked doomed. However, his campaign against the NCR had attracted the attention of Stern's Raiders who decided that the tribal might be a valuable asset if rescued and recruited. So, Stern's Raiders decided to stage a daring rescue and free Three Leaf. As Three Leaf was being led up to a tree just outside Frankville to be hanged, Stern's Raiders fired several flares into the crowd watching the execution. This caused mass hysteria and confusion. The Raiders soon swooped in, rescuing Three Leaf and escaping the NCR garrison that came soon after the incident. Three Leaf's escape was a huge embarrassment and a big wake-up call for the Republic and Frankville by extension. More NCR troopers were sent to beef up the garrison of Fort Eugene, and eyes were kept peeled for the outlaws of Stern's Raiders. The sharecroppers of Frankville continued their work even as war loomed on the horizon. The formation of the Northwestern Alliance in late 2266 alarmed Frankville, and the sharecroppers became more paranoid, refusing contact with any of their local neighbors beside their allies at Fort Eugene. The War of the Northwestern Alliance began in 2267, and Frankville was on the frontlines of this new war. Its neighbor, Fort Eugene, was a top-priority target for the Northwestern Alliance, and the settlement was repeatedly attacked by the Northwestern Alliance's forces. Frankville was luckily ignored by these attacks due to the town's insignificance in comparison to Fort Eugene and their small garrison of NCR troopers. A couple of tribals and Sons of Liberty occasionally assaulted the town to loot supplies, but most of time Frankville remained safe from the savagery of the attacks on Fort Eugene. That was until Fort Eugene fell in 2268. The sharecroppers in Frankville quickly heard that Fort Eugene and were terrified of what might come next without the protection of Fort Eugene's garrison. The NCR troopers there, scared for their lives, deserted their posts and headed south towards refuge. Alliance forces arrived soon after the desertions and Frankville's sharecroppers, defenseless, surrendered without a fight to save their lives. To further satisfy their new overlords, the sharecroppers of Frankville swore allegiance to the Northwestern Alliance instead of NCR. Gorden McTavish presided over the swearings of allegiance while the rest of Stern's Raiders watched, bemused. After switching their allegiances, the sharecroppers of Frankville continued farming as they did before, just now selling their products to the Northwestern Alliance. Being constantly menaced by Alliance forces scared the sharcroppers into submission and for almost a year they remained compliant, against their better judgement. Many in town still supported NCR privately, and some did openly, at their own peril. Still, Frankville remained under the thumb of the Alliance. That was until the Twin Pines Pack came into the picture. Badlander mercenaries working with the Republic, the Twin Pines Pack had been roaming around Cascadia since the beginning of the war, causing chaos and ruination in their wake. They came in contact with Frankville in the winter of 2269 when several Badlanders from the Pack rolled into town with the intention of extorting the locals out of some food, citing their NCR authority. The Badlanders were surprised to find the desperate sharecroppers happy to see NCR, even mercs, thinking them as liberators instead of raiders. The sharecroppers had never dealt with Badlanders before but had heard of their association with NCR and were desperate for new protectors, preferably less dangerous than the Alliance. The Badlanders, seeing an opportunity, struck up a deal with the sharecroppers. They would protect the town in the name of NCR while the town would supply them with needed goods and equipment. Frankville agreed to the deal and bloodlessly returned to NCR hands. This was not without a cost however, as the Badlanders took more than crops that year. Frankville remained out of the war after that point, and things returned to normal. The sharecroppers continued their work, free of the indignities of the Northwestern Alliance. When the war finally ended in 2270, the sharecroppers celebrated their "victory". Since then, the duty of protecting Frankville has changed from Badlanders to the FNA due to regional tensions and new threats. The town's loyalty to NCR, betrayal of the Northwestern Alliance, and isolation antagonized its neighbors. Frankville remained isolated from the rest of Cascadia even if that seemed non-beneficial or even harmful to the settlement. Since Fort Eugene was destroyed, Frankville now mostly exports lumber to NCR instead of food to Fort Eugene. The town is the Republic's northernmost settlement at the moment and sells itself as that. Frankville considers itself a NCR town and treats itself as such, to the FNA's light annoyance. Still, as long as Frankville pays its "taxes", the FNA is happy. Frankville was shook up again when the gunslinger Horus B. Gamble came into town in 2281. It had been fifteen years since Stern's Raiders had first come through town, and Gamble was not recognized initially by the sharecroppers in Frankville. Gamble came to the local inn, ate dinner, and went to bed without any trouble. He had taken a risk coming to a town loyal to NCR but needed a bed for the night. It was in the morning at breakfast when things fell apart. Gamble came to the inn's common room and sat down to eat a breakfast of eggs and bacon. That was until one older sharecropper entered the inn to speak to the innkeeper and in the process recognized Gamble. The sharecropper quickly exited the inn to alert the sheriff and the commander of the local FNA troopers. Gamble noticed this, ate his food, and paid for his meal. Gamble briskly left the inn but stopped outside as he saw a group of FNA troopers surrounding the entrance of the inn. The commander of the local FNA, Michael Fields, told Gamble that he was not trouble, yet, and they just wanted to ask a couple of questions. The old gunslinger answered this by making a run off the inn's porch and ducking behind a supply crate. The FNA troopers opened fire as soon as Gamble moved, and he was pinned down behind the supply crate, trapped between the inn and the crate. Gamble returned fire but was hard-pressed not to get shot. By that time, the noise had attracted the attention of the town and the innkeeper emerged from the inn bearing a shotgun, firing it at Gamble. Injured by the shotgun slug, Gamble returned fire and shot the innkeeper through the temple. He quickly gave himself a stimpak boost and then decided on a risky move. Gamble scrambled back on the inn's porch and into the door, past the innkeeper's body and the whiz of bullets ricocheting past his head. Going back through the inn past cowering patrons, Gamble finally found what he was looking for: a back door. He exited through there and surprised a young FNA trooper who had been posted back there to catch Gamble if he had tried the back way out. Gamble quickly shot the boy in the gut and made his getaway through the streets of Frankville, the FNA hot on his heels. Gamble managed to escape Frankville with a bit of a scrape, but most of the townspeople were convinced he had died of the wounds he had sustained during the gunfight. This satisfied them, thinking they had finally avenged their embarrassment at the hands of Stern's Raiders. Currently, the sharecropper town of Frankville remains under the authority of the NCR and the protection of the FNA while remaining isolated from the rest of Cascadia. That is how they prefer it. Government The town of Frankville is run like a traditional NCR settlement with a mayor, a sheriff, and a codified set of laws. However, the FNA at Frankville, within the town and encamped nearby, act as a separate entity apart from the rest of the town's government and mostly enforce the law as they see fit. This has brought the FNA and Frankville's town government to butt heads several times, but none of these conflicts have ever translated into bloodshed. Economy The economy of Frankville is almost entirely agricultural, besides a couple of shops in town. The NCR and FNA both have a tax on goods in Frankville, which has dissuaded many a caravan from going to the town. However, the residents of Frankville pay their taxes with little difficulty most years, though with muted curses on others. They get free water from NCR caravans though, which they are very grateful for. Layout Frankville is a post-War town built out of scrap, stone, and wood. The town is centered around a couple of shops that are restored pre-War buildings. The residential part of Frankville is much more ramshackle than the business part, built out of scrap and wood. Metal walls are built around the town for protection from raiders and tribals. Lumber is the town's major export. Outside the walls, the homesteads providing food for the town and sending some south to NCR manage on their own. The homesteaders are vulnerable to attacks but will retreat behind Frankville's walls if necessary. Culture Being beyond "official" NCR territory and being the NCR's northernmost settlement, Frankville has something of a frontier atmosphere. The area around the town has never been fully developed and after the destruction of Fort Eugene, Frankville has only become even more remote. However, NCR law is still very much enforced in Frankville by the sheriff and (obstinately) the FNA. The townspeople are grateful for this, afraid of being overrun by the horrors beyond their walls in the wasteland of Cascadia. Frankville also has an odd philosophy of self-reliance, excluding itself from the larger region in favor of taking care of itself. This rather ironic to many seeing as the settlement is subsidized by the NCR government and protected by the FNA. The NCR settlers and sharecroppers in Frankville have a very arrogant attitude towards the other peoples of Cascadia, regarding most of their neighbors as lawless and uncivilized. This is despite many of town's residents pasts as cons, beggars, and ex-raiders before becoming sharecroppers. That is behind them now though, and all of the townspeople are on their best behavior, hoping for more land grants when the NCR achieves "final victory" in Cascadia. Frankville's neighbors, Oregon tribals, and homesteaders, hate the town for its turncoat past and loyalties to the NCR, but they see it as too much trouble to destroy the town with the added FNA protection. Geography Frankville is only located a few miles off of I-5 and the pre-War ruins of Eugene (and the post-War ruins of Fort Eugene). The town was founded on top of the ruins of pre-War suburbs, but few buildings from before the war remain in Frankville. Relations Ever since it and Fort Eugene's founding by NCR settlers, Frankville has had a close relationship with the NCR and (at one time) Fort Eugene. Frankville's crops supplied Fort Eugene and its garrison while Fort Eugene's garrison provided protection for Frankville and free water. This allowed Frankville to largely ignore other groups in the area, such as Oregon tribals and Badlanders, and act as if they were still inside NCR borders. Until Fort Eugene fell, Frankville was considered more or less an extension of the town. That was until the Oregon Brushfire Wars when Fort Eugene repeatedly came under attack and left Frankville largely on its own, luckily left mostly unnoticed by the Northwestern Alliance. After Fort Eugene fell and Frankville lost its protection, the town briefly switched its allegiances to the Northwestern Alliance in order to survive. However, Frankville quickly turned sides again less than a year later, gaining the protection of the Twin Pines Pack, Badlanders. Currently, Frankville is back under NCR rule with FNA protection. With the arrival of unsavory sharecroppers from New California, the town's turncoat history, and the presence of the NCR, Frankville is generally looked down upon by Cascadian locals, who prefer not to go or trade there. Frankville is alright with that, in turn looking down on their neighbors for their hostility and "lack of civility". Unlike Fort Eugene, Frankville was not considered a caravan hub and still is not, even after Fort Eugene's destruction. The town is just too far out of the way, and the safety of Frankville does not negate its unappealing qualities to caravans, who mostly just pass it by on I-5. Category:Places Category:Communities Category:New California Republic Category:Cascadia